Car-coupling



(No Model.)

GAR GOUPLING. No. 314,577.

Patentedv Mar. 31, 1885.

d. Il I l* :IIJ d jfwg UNITED STATES PATENT CE1-TCE.

ROBERT HITCHCOCK, OF SPRINGFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS.

CAR-COUPLING.

SPECIFICATION 'forming part of Letters Patent No. 314,577, dated March 31, 1885.V

Application filed November 7, 15S-i. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ROBERT HITCHCOCK, a citizen of the United States, residing at Springiield, Hampden county, State of Massachusetts, have invent-ed a new and useful Self- Coupling Draw-Bar, of which the followingis a specification.

This invention relates to an improved selfcoupling draw-bar for railway-cars; and the iirst part of my invention consists of a pair of draw-bars in the contiguous ends. of two cars, each draw-bar having a hinge upon its inner end, each having an end projecting beyond its car, aud-each projecting end provided with a hook-surface and a beveled head beyond the same, in combination with two yokes upon the corresponding ends of said cars, adapted to support the free ends of the draw-bars, and adapted to guide their hook ends upward and away from each other under pressure brought against their inclined ends to permit at a certain point their hooks to engage by gravity in following back with their draw-bars up on their guiding-yokes, each draw-bar being also provided with means for manually raising it in its yoke to uncouple, or to place it in a position to prevent the act of coupling.

The second part of my invention consists of a provision against draw-bars so constructed and arranged becoming uncoupled by the motion of the cars in `certain Contingences, as fully hereinafter described.

My invention is fully illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure I is a partial end elevation of a portion of a carbody with parts of my invention removed. Fig. II is a partial end elevation of a carbody, showing my invention applied thereton Fig. III is a plan view of one end of a carbody, having the hook of its draw-bar engaged with a corresponding hook, and its side timbers, having the car removed therefrom. Fig. IV is a detail in profile of a part of my invention, and Fig. V is an elevation of the handle mechanism for operating a draw-bar.

Ais a draw-bar held between side timbers, a a, below the car-body, and connected at its inner end to a spring-follower in the ordinary way. B is astirrup or yoke, pendent from the end of the car C. The yoke B is shown in Fig. I let into and firmly bolted to the dead-wood,

position, is thedraw-bar A. The. draw-bar" A, when bearing upon the base of the yoke B, as seen in the section Fig. I, has space above it in the yoke to permit it to be swung upon its inner hinge to have its outer hook end, as seen in Fig. II, clear above a corresponding hook resting upon its bearing in its yoke. The

motion required at the hinge end ofthe drawbar is so slight that a spindle carrying the spring-follower and keyed loosely in the end of the draw-bar gives ample play to the drawbar at this point.

In Fig. III a joint is shown formed to have a hinge coincident to the line of movement of the draw-bar. As shown in Fig. III, opposite corners of the side timbers, c a, are beveled away to offer no obstruction to the movement of the draw-bar iu its yoke. The drawbar A, held at one end by the spring-follower, is provided at the other with a iiange, c,which comes against the outside of the yoke B, to

hold the hook end projected. The front ends of two draw-bars being correspondingly inclined, as seen in Fig. III, the result of their coming forcibly in contact is that each is forced from its seat in the yok-e up the inclined sides thereof until the inclined heads, clearing each other, free the hooks to permit the draw-bars by gravity to self-couple.7

As a convenient means of raising a drawbar to uncouple, as well as to prevent a car from coupling, a crank-shaft, D, is shown over the end of the car, supported in suitable bearings, provided With crank-handles d d, and

l having a crank-roll, E, over which passes a chain, f, made fast at one end to the roll E and at its other to a staple, y, in the drawbar. The handles d d are preferably supplied with a spring, and bear against a track, F, provided with a stop, h, at the upper end, and with a stop, t', over which the handle is sprung at the lower end, so that in operation from the y ICO construction of the road or other causes, I prothe end of one car approximately coincident.

vide a surface, H, arranged to project from to the. outer bearing-edge of the yoke upon the corresponding car, and provide the contiguous ends of both cars with said surfaces, in arrangement and conguration reverse counterparts of each other, by means of which, during the momentof time any movement of separation tends to take place, the opposite ends of the hooks strike the near surfaces H. and all motion of the kind is at once arrested.

In Fig. IV the surface H, formed of a plate securely bolted to the dead-wood, is shown.

In the drawings a Sprngbufifer, I, is shown arranged to relieve the draw-bars of a portion of the shock of impact.

The draw-bar hooks are shown hollowed out upon theirends and otherwise adapted to receive the end of the ordinary link.

Now, having described my invention, what I claim is 1. An automatic car-coupler consisting of a draw-bar hinged at its inner end to the earbody, and having a hook and beveled head at its outer end, a yoke at the end of the car having an upwardly-inclined oblique passage through which the body ofthe draw-bar passes,

and a chain and attachments connected to the bar by which the saine may be lifted in uncoupling, all in combination, substantially as stated. y

2. The combination, with the end of a car, of a draw-bar hinged thereto at its inner end, and having a hook and beveled head at its outer end, a yoke attached to the oar, having an upwardly-inclined passage through which the body of the draw-bar extends, and aprojecting guard which extends near the drawbar, to prevent accidental uncoupling, all substantiallyas described.

ROBERT HITCHCOCK.

Vitnesses:

R. F. HYDE, N. A. LEONARD. 

